Humble church founders convicted of tax fraud

Two church founders in Humble were convicted on tax fraud charges Thursday, KHOU reported.

Pastor David Montgomery and his wife, Bridget, founders of Restoration Temple Church of God in Christ in Humble, were charged of under-reporting their gross income from their construction business, Montgomery’s Contracting. The couple began their trial August 7.

An IRS agent at the trial testified that because of payments not claimed on the couple’s income tax returns, the loss of tax revenue to the U.S. Treasury was approximately $600,000.
The Montgomerys were also charged with conspiring to impair and impede the IRS in its computation and collection of income taxes between January 2003 and April 2006.

Witnesses at the trial included pastors and representatives of local churches that used the Montgomery’s construction services.

The Montgomerys also claimed more income when applying for a $900,000 loan and applications for credit than what they originally reported to the IRS, according to evidence presented by the government at the trial.

The pastor said a friend in the construction industry advised him that funds from the business given to the church did not have to be taxed and reported to the IRS. His wife said that she made mistakes when she prepared the returns because she was “way in over her head.”

The pastor and his wife remain on bond pending their sentencing hearing. They face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy conviction and a maximum of three years and a $100,000 fine on each of the false statements convictions.